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O WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY McCoy namc?d Big Sky MVP See page 6 V? w 1 TVrV - f.l. A TheQ Provost said bulk of increase will be institutional By Ashley Salvador business editor 1 The Signpost Weber State University students will see a tuition increase for the 2009-2010 school year that much is certain. How much it will be is the question. That question was discussed at a hearing yesterday in the Shepherd Union Building, open to students and the general public. Out of the 20 people in attendance, seven identified themselves as students. WSU Provost Michael Vaughan said the WSU increase, which is called a Tier-Two increase, will be 5 to 9 percent. That translates to between $79 and $142 per upreme court ov turns Davis Decision deemed unfit for current senators By Joshua Pedersen sr. reporter I The Signpost Monday's senate legislation that called for the elimination of a Davis vice president in the upcoming elections was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court late Thursday afternoon. "I think it is great news for the Davis and Ogden campuses," said Davis Campus SenatoT Victoria Thompson. Thompson, who is considering running for the new vice president, fought for the position in the senate on Monday. Thursday's court ruling opens the door for her to run. Supreme Court Justice Ryan Jessen issued the ruling indicating the recently passed "Davis Campus Bill was unconstitutional and in violation of the Bylaws with a vote of 2-0." Since the constitution and bylaws do not specifically address the removal of an open position during the elections process, the court ruling cited the senate's lack of power to change timelines associated with the election application packet. "I think it is only fair that since the election packet already went out that they keep this on the ballot," Thompson said. The Supreme Court also extended the election application deadline until March 13th. Thompson said she believes the new vice president will heal the problems that have been plaguing the two campuses. Health Professions Senator Jamey Price proposed the overturned bill and disagrees that another level of government might J V - i ' f . " . PMOIOHI UKA BUTTEKMtLD I II iL .si'u.sj Paul Mero, president of the Southernland Institute, was one of four members of a panel that were asked questions that were compiled by groups of Weber State University students at Wednesday's Deliberative Democracy Day. n m mm the first tier tuition increase may be lower," Vaughan said. It's no secret that budget cuts are being made statewide for higher education. This cut affects the 21,388 students enrolled at WSU. "Weber State University is facing large budget cuts from the state," said Vaughan. "I've seen figures as high as 19 percent and 9 percent. Even looking at the lower end, Weber State University is seeing a large cut." Translated into dollars, that cut means a loss of between $6 million and $13.3 million in one year. "We face declining state budgets. Our budget has not been established for next year, but we know based upon discussions that are taking place, that this trend is going to continue, and it may even decline more sharply titan it has in See Tuition page 5 semester. The WSU increase will be on top of the amount mandated by the state legislature, a Tier-One increase, which traditionally is in the 3 or 4 percent range or approximately $58 to $77. The Tier-One increase, set by the state legislature, applies to all colleges and universities in the state. The Tier-Two increase is institution specific. According to Vaughan, WSU has little choice but to implement a hefty tuition increase because of the steep budget cuts, but he said students might get a little break from the legislature and only see a 1 percent increase in Tier-One. A 1 percent increase is $31. "We do anticipate this year that VP decision solve the communication gaps. "This is less than 10 percent of our student population and we want to give them one-fourth of our executive branch," Price said. Legislative Vice President Tyler Latham was indifferent about the ruling but said he thinks having a new vice president alone won't fix the situation. - " "I don't thinkyou can fix the problem at the top," Latham said. "You need to start at the bottom that's the role of a Senator, not a vice president." Although the Senate voted 12-4 this week to postpone the new position, the ultimate decision was made by the two members of the Supreme Court. "I am tired of the whole university's student government being controlled by one or two people who have taken it upon themselves to control the affairs of the students," Price said. Jessen contends that the court does not rule on the ideas of the students, but rules on the actions and legislation. "I don't want people, or the students," Jessen said, "to feel that the Supreme Court holds a certain idea on a position like the vice president. There were no personal aspects taken into account with this ruling." Price said he feels differently. Price indicated that one Supreme Court Justice, Chris Bentley, did have a personal interest in -the legislation. Bentley authored the original Davis vice president proposal last year while serving as Senator. Price believes Bentley should have abstained from the court's vote because of his vested interest in the new position. See Davis page 8 in Hdlll J ! i Pilfer r- j , 3000 - j i 2500 - 2000 lR 1500 1 Qfo) 1000 500 - I J I -J 1 1 li'laW Li BASE TUITION I Kayley Freed practices roping cattle Wednesday in the Shepherd Union Building Atrium on Wednesday, March 4 . Freed has been on the Weber State University Rodeo Team for two years, and is competing with them March 6-7. Deliberative Democracy Day: Talks on Immigration By Frances Kelsey managing editor I The Signpost Weber State University was one of 200 campuses who held events in conjunction with Deliberative Democracy Day this Wednesday. WSU Professor Kathryn MacKay heard about ADP and their Deliberative Democracy Day and wanted WSU to be a part of it. "I asked our provost Mike Vaughan if he would apply for Weber State to be one of the colleges selected, he did and we were," MacKay said. "This is the second year of the Deliberative Democracy Project. We are one of a few campuses in the country currently creating an event or a series of events that are modeled on a process that was initiated by a group of people at Stanford University. It involves getting people to take the questionnaire on an important topic, then discuss it, ask questions of experts and take the questionnaire again." This year's topic for deliberation was SECOND TIER INCREASE CRAPI IIC BY HUNTER SAIZ THE SIGNPOST S(D 111 4 ' --.-' l 1 4 PI IOIO HV BRYAN BUTTERHELD 1IIL SK.N'O.sf immigration, both legal and illegal, into the United States, but MacKay was more interested in the process of the event. "I was more focused on the process," MacKay said. "I don't do this kind of research, I don't use statistics in my research, I'm a historian. But I really like the idea to get students together, train a group of students to facilitate the discussion, get them talking about something, have them ask questions of people outside the university whom we've brought to campus that are seen as experts in their field and then have them discuss and take the questionnaire again." One thousand WSU students were given a survey on immigration earlier in the semester. On Wednesday, those students were invited to take part in a small group discussion to take deeper looks into the matter. Groups of roughly See Immigration page 5 How federa! money may help WSU Legislature. Jk By Molly Bennett correspondent The Signpost , The federal stimulus money changes things for higher education, but not completely and not yet. Before Governor Huntsman accepted part of President Obama's Federal Stimulus check, budget cuts for higher education in Utah were potentially set at 17.5 percent, according to Brad Mortensen, Weber State University-legislative liaison. "That was treating us on par with all other parts of state government," Mortensen said. Of the half a billion dollars of the federal stimulus money given toward education in Utah recently, Mortensen said about $480 million is designated for helping public and higher education budget cuts. Now, legislators are looking at a possible 9 percent cut for the 2010 fiscal year. - "It's really not finalized," Mortensen said. "They are putting all the numbers together." He said there will most likely be an ongoing cut of 17.5 percent, but the federal stimulus money is allowing enough backfill to make it feel like a 9-percent cut. But WSU is not making any major decisions until legislators finalize the decision next week. WSU Provost Michael Vaughan said they don't know if the cut will be 9 percent in total or on top of the 4 percent cut made in September 2008 and the 7.5 percent cut made early in the session in January, both of which wculd effect fiscal year 2010. "If it is the sum of the three," Vaughan said, "it's really not that different than what we planned on." Talks of budget cuts early this year were reason for concern at WSU. Before the 2009 Legislative session began in January, WSU President Ann Millner held a meeting for WSU faculty and staff, preparing them for what may come in respect to budget cuts; the worst-case scenario being layoffs. In the last couple of months, Utah Slate University has announced a furlough (effective this week) and laid off 20 employees. Vaughan said USU's layoffs are due to the September cut, which also cut riscal year 200'). Since last September, WSU departments have been taking measures to cut costs. In an interview following Millner's meeting in January, WSU Lnglish Instructor Kyra Hudson said this is the first semester that her online class is included in her teaching load of four classes. She said she usually teaches four classes in the department in addition to an online class. "By canceling my literature class they saved two classes," Hudson said. "No literature class and the WSU Online pays for the online course." All of Hudson's classes are overloaded. "I'm happy to take extra students or do anything really to keep the program going," Hudson said. "I would just like to keep my job." Hudson has taught at WSU for 20 years as an adjunct, See Money page 5

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O WEBER STATE UNIVERSITY McCoy namc?d Big Sky MVP See page 6 V? w 1 TVrV - f.l. A TheQ Provost said bulk of increase will be institutional By Ashley Salvador business editor 1 The Signpost Weber State University students will see a tuition increase for the 2009-2010 school year that much is certain. How much it will be is the question. That question was discussed at a hearing yesterday in the Shepherd Union Building, open to students and the general public. Out of the 20 people in attendance, seven identified themselves as students. WSU Provost Michael Vaughan said the WSU increase, which is called a Tier-Two increase, will be 5 to 9 percent. That translates to between $79 and $142 per upreme court ov turns Davis Decision deemed unfit for current senators By Joshua Pedersen sr. reporter I The Signpost Monday's senate legislation that called for the elimination of a Davis vice president in the upcoming elections was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court late Thursday afternoon. "I think it is great news for the Davis and Ogden campuses," said Davis Campus SenatoT Victoria Thompson. Thompson, who is considering running for the new vice president, fought for the position in the senate on Monday. Thursday's court ruling opens the door for her to run. Supreme Court Justice Ryan Jessen issued the ruling indicating the recently passed "Davis Campus Bill was unconstitutional and in violation of the Bylaws with a vote of 2-0." Since the constitution and bylaws do not specifically address the removal of an open position during the elections process, the court ruling cited the senate's lack of power to change timelines associated with the election application packet. "I think it is only fair that since the election packet already went out that they keep this on the ballot," Thompson said. The Supreme Court also extended the election application deadline until March 13th. Thompson said she believes the new vice president will heal the problems that have been plaguing the two campuses. Health Professions Senator Jamey Price proposed the overturned bill and disagrees that another level of government might J V - i ' f . " . PMOIOHI UKA BUTTEKMtLD I II iL .si'u.sj Paul Mero, president of the Southernland Institute, was one of four members of a panel that were asked questions that were compiled by groups of Weber State University students at Wednesday's Deliberative Democracy Day. n m mm the first tier tuition increase may be lower," Vaughan said. It's no secret that budget cuts are being made statewide for higher education. This cut affects the 21,388 students enrolled at WSU. "Weber State University is facing large budget cuts from the state," said Vaughan. "I've seen figures as high as 19 percent and 9 percent. Even looking at the lower end, Weber State University is seeing a large cut." Translated into dollars, that cut means a loss of between $6 million and $13.3 million in one year. "We face declining state budgets. Our budget has not been established for next year, but we know based upon discussions that are taking place, that this trend is going to continue, and it may even decline more sharply titan it has in See Tuition page 5 semester. The WSU increase will be on top of the amount mandated by the state legislature, a Tier-One increase, which traditionally is in the 3 or 4 percent range or approximately $58 to $77. The Tier-One increase, set by the state legislature, applies to all colleges and universities in the state. The Tier-Two increase is institution specific. According to Vaughan, WSU has little choice but to implement a hefty tuition increase because of the steep budget cuts, but he said students might get a little break from the legislature and only see a 1 percent increase in Tier-One. A 1 percent increase is $31. "We do anticipate this year that VP decision solve the communication gaps. "This is less than 10 percent of our student population and we want to give them one-fourth of our executive branch," Price said. Legislative Vice President Tyler Latham was indifferent about the ruling but said he thinks having a new vice president alone won't fix the situation. - " "I don't thinkyou can fix the problem at the top," Latham said. "You need to start at the bottom that's the role of a Senator, not a vice president." Although the Senate voted 12-4 this week to postpone the new position, the ultimate decision was made by the two members of the Supreme Court. "I am tired of the whole university's student government being controlled by one or two people who have taken it upon themselves to control the affairs of the students," Price said. Jessen contends that the court does not rule on the ideas of the students, but rules on the actions and legislation. "I don't want people, or the students," Jessen said, "to feel that the Supreme Court holds a certain idea on a position like the vice president. There were no personal aspects taken into account with this ruling." Price said he feels differently. Price indicated that one Supreme Court Justice, Chris Bentley, did have a personal interest in -the legislation. Bentley authored the original Davis vice president proposal last year while serving as Senator. Price believes Bentley should have abstained from the court's vote because of his vested interest in the new position. See Davis page 8 in Hdlll J ! i Pilfer r- j , 3000 - j i 2500 - 2000 lR 1500 1 Qfo) 1000 500 - I J I -J 1 1 li'laW Li BASE TUITION I Kayley Freed practices roping cattle Wednesday in the Shepherd Union Building Atrium on Wednesday, March 4 . Freed has been on the Weber State University Rodeo Team for two years, and is competing with them March 6-7. Deliberative Democracy Day: Talks on Immigration By Frances Kelsey managing editor I The Signpost Weber State University was one of 200 campuses who held events in conjunction with Deliberative Democracy Day this Wednesday. WSU Professor Kathryn MacKay heard about ADP and their Deliberative Democracy Day and wanted WSU to be a part of it. "I asked our provost Mike Vaughan if he would apply for Weber State to be one of the colleges selected, he did and we were," MacKay said. "This is the second year of the Deliberative Democracy Project. We are one of a few campuses in the country currently creating an event or a series of events that are modeled on a process that was initiated by a group of people at Stanford University. It involves getting people to take the questionnaire on an important topic, then discuss it, ask questions of experts and take the questionnaire again." This year's topic for deliberation was SECOND TIER INCREASE CRAPI IIC BY HUNTER SAIZ THE SIGNPOST S(D 111 4 ' --.-' l 1 4 PI IOIO HV BRYAN BUTTERHELD 1IIL SK.N'O.sf immigration, both legal and illegal, into the United States, but MacKay was more interested in the process of the event. "I was more focused on the process," MacKay said. "I don't do this kind of research, I don't use statistics in my research, I'm a historian. But I really like the idea to get students together, train a group of students to facilitate the discussion, get them talking about something, have them ask questions of people outside the university whom we've brought to campus that are seen as experts in their field and then have them discuss and take the questionnaire again." One thousand WSU students were given a survey on immigration earlier in the semester. On Wednesday, those students were invited to take part in a small group discussion to take deeper looks into the matter. Groups of roughly See Immigration page 5 How federa! money may help WSU Legislature. Jk By Molly Bennett correspondent The Signpost , The federal stimulus money changes things for higher education, but not completely and not yet. Before Governor Huntsman accepted part of President Obama's Federal Stimulus check, budget cuts for higher education in Utah were potentially set at 17.5 percent, according to Brad Mortensen, Weber State University-legislative liaison. "That was treating us on par with all other parts of state government," Mortensen said. Of the half a billion dollars of the federal stimulus money given toward education in Utah recently, Mortensen said about $480 million is designated for helping public and higher education budget cuts. Now, legislators are looking at a possible 9 percent cut for the 2010 fiscal year. - "It's really not finalized," Mortensen said. "They are putting all the numbers together." He said there will most likely be an ongoing cut of 17.5 percent, but the federal stimulus money is allowing enough backfill to make it feel like a 9-percent cut. But WSU is not making any major decisions until legislators finalize the decision next week. WSU Provost Michael Vaughan said they don't know if the cut will be 9 percent in total or on top of the 4 percent cut made in September 2008 and the 7.5 percent cut made early in the session in January, both of which wculd effect fiscal year 2010. "If it is the sum of the three," Vaughan said, "it's really not that different than what we planned on." Talks of budget cuts early this year were reason for concern at WSU. Before the 2009 Legislative session began in January, WSU President Ann Millner held a meeting for WSU faculty and staff, preparing them for what may come in respect to budget cuts; the worst-case scenario being layoffs. In the last couple of months, Utah Slate University has announced a furlough (effective this week) and laid off 20 employees. Vaughan said USU's layoffs are due to the September cut, which also cut riscal year 200'). Since last September, WSU departments have been taking measures to cut costs. In an interview following Millner's meeting in January, WSU Lnglish Instructor Kyra Hudson said this is the first semester that her online class is included in her teaching load of four classes. She said she usually teaches four classes in the department in addition to an online class. "By canceling my literature class they saved two classes," Hudson said. "No literature class and the WSU Online pays for the online course." All of Hudson's classes are overloaded. "I'm happy to take extra students or do anything really to keep the program going," Hudson said. "I would just like to keep my job." Hudson has taught at WSU for 20 years as an adjunct, See Money page 5